Anzu's Duelist Kingdom
by cypsiman2
Summary: Alternate Universe; in a world where Jounouchi's sister Shizuka doesn't need eye surgery, Anzu decides to enter Duelist Kingdom to earn the money she needs to fulfill her dream of dancing in America, but what changes will ripple out from this one, seemingly small difference?
1. Chapter 1

A Longshot vs. dozens of short shots

* * *

"Ugh, I can't believe this." Anzu Mazaki fell back onto her bed with her arm covering her eyes; just the other day Yuugi's grandpa Sugoroku had been trapped inside of an 8mm tape by a man named Pegasus J. Crawford, the creator of the card game Duel Monsters and possessor of the Millennium Eye, just like Yuugi's Millennium Puzzle and Bakura's Millennium Ring. With all that weighing on her mind, it wasn't all that surprising that she'd hit another customer at the greasy joint she had been working at after the scuz had grabbed her butt and of course she was fired, because why should the customer be expected to keep their hands to themselves? It didn't help matters that as a high-school student she wasn't allowed to have a job, Jounouchi's paper route the exception due to his father's gambling debts, and of course being a teenage girl meant that the whole deck was stacked against her in so many ways it wasn't even worth saying it wasn't funny. All the stupid humiliating jobs she'd been in, all so she could make it to America.

Then her phone rang. Anzu answered it. "Anzu?"

"Hey Yuugi." Anzu uncovered her eyes. "You holding up okay? You and...the other you?"

"Kind of?" Anzu sat up. "See, there was an envelope on my door, and there were cards inside it, cards about Duelist Kingdom."

"I'll be right there Yuugi." Sure, there wasn't much all that she could objectively do, but her personal problems were peanuts next to what Yuugi was going through; her next job hunt could wait until after she'd seen Yuugi through this crisis.

"Hey Anzu!" She had just arrived at the door to Yuugi's home, the Kame Gameshop, and was not the least bit surprised to see Jounouchi, Honda, and Bakura arriving at the same time; they were all Yuugi's friends, they were all going to be there for Yuugi and do what they could for him. "Man, doesn't seem like we can ever catch a break, doesn't it? No offense Bakura." Jounouchi said.

"It's quite all right Jounouchi, I was quite grateful for all of your help." Anzu remembered their battle with the other Bakura quite well enough.

"You guys coming in or what?" Honda was already opening the door, and so they all followed him inside and into Yuugi's room...

"Oh, hello everyone." They all paused when they saw Yuugi's mother. "I'm glad you're here; I'm going to be seeing Grandpa Sugoroku in the hospital, I hope you won't mind spending some time with Yuugi."

"Of course we don't mind, we're Yuugi's buds."

"Thank goodness, lately he's been doing nothing but holing himself up in his room and watching old tapes of Grandpa Sugoroku."

"R-right." Anzu wasn't the least bit surprised that Yuugi hadn't told his mom the truth about what had happened, about any of the things that had happened since Yuugi had solved the Millennium Puzzle. "You take care and drive safely, okay?"

"I always do, but thank you all the same dear." They watched Yuugi's mom leave, and after a moment's silence they resumed on their way into Yuugi's room.

"Hey guys." Yuugi was in the middle of the floor, legs crossed and cards spread out over the floor. The videoplayer with Grandpa Sugoroku inside was on Yuugi's bed, watching over him; Anzu was struck by the strangeness that Yuugi was, caught in that horrible awkward stage between boy and man, feeling the wants and needs of being a child and being an adult. "There was an envelope stuck in the door, and these were inside." He gestured at the cards. "This one says when to be at the docks."

"And this one shows a picture of the island where Duelist Kingdom is going to be." Honda picked up that card.

"And this one says you need to have at least one star chip on that weird glove that came with the tape." Jounouchi said.

"Huh, The Honor of the King's Left is blank; I wonder if Pegasus will fill that in if you win at the end?" Bakura said.

Anzu hadn't listened to any of them though; her eyes had been on The Honor of the King's Right, lots of gold and jewels pictured and the text simply read 'Great Wealth'; she remembered how in the tape Pegasus had mentioned that there would be a cash prize at the tournament, and Pegasus being an American, his idea of a cash prize would probably be...

"Anzu? Yo, Anzu, you with us?" Honda was waving his hand in front of her face.

"Y-yeah." She nodded at him, turned to Yuugi. "Um, can I ask you something Yuugi."

"Well, sure Anzu, what is it?" How like him; even at a time like this, he was acting like her issues were more important.

"There were two star chips that came with the glove and tape, right?" Yuugi nodded. Anzu took a deep breath, she had to say this directly, she couldn't waver or be nervous. "Can I have one of them?"

"Eh, say again Anzu?" Jounouchi dug his finger into his ear. "Cause, uh, I could have sworn you asked Yuugi for one of the star chips he needed."

"I did." Anzu put more confidence into her voice. "I want to be in the tournament too, I want to have a chance at the prize money."

"But Anzu," Bakura said, "if Yuugi gives you one of the chips, it could leave him at a serious disadvantage."

"I know, that's why I'm asking." She had no intention of forcing the issue, if Yuugi wanted both chips to make sure he had the best chance possible...

"Sure thing, here you go Anzu." He'd already gotten the star chip from the box and was holding out in his hand for her to take.

"Uh, Yuugi? You sure you might not want to think this over?" Honda turned his head to Anzu. "Nothing against you or anything, just...you know, this is real serious what Yuugi's got to deal with."

"My dream's serious too." It had been hers for as long as she could remember, and this was a long shot to be sure, like trying to reach the stars in one mighty jump, but if she could make it, if she could make that jump...

"Yep, and since we've got a week before the boat comes in, we can use that time to work on our decks together." He looked away, and for a moment Anzu could have sworn there was a bit of red on his cheeks.

"Oh ho ho." Yuugi's grandpa said from inside the tape, startling everyone with the reminder that he was still there. "Just remember, I will be chaperoning you two to make sure you really are working on your dueling, hmm?"

"Grandpa!" Yuugi's face was beet red as he grabbed the player and shook it up and down in an effort to shake his grandfather around inside it.

Anzu, meanwhile, clenched her fist and focused her thoughts on the future, on the dream that she was going to grasp with her own hands.


	2. Chapter 2

The Journey Begins, Meeting on the Docks

* * *

"Isn't there anything I can say that could change your mind?" Anzu's mother stood before her, arms at her side and head dipped in resignation.

"No Mom." Anzu had her deck in her hand, the deck that Yuugi had helped her to put together over the past week; sure, she'd beaten Jounouchi plenty of times before during lunch at school, but she wasn't fool enough to think that would be enough for even the weakest opponents at Duelist Kingdom. "If I can do this, if I can get that money all at once without having to go back to one of those sleazy, greesy joints..." Anzu shuddered; the only halfway decent place had been at Kaiba Land, and that was before the whole plot to kill Yuugi and their friends.

"All right, all right, I was like that at your age too..." Anzu's mom raised her head. "Just be careful out there and...well, good luck." Anzu's mom hugged her.

"Thanks mom." They separated and Anzu left to meet up with Yuugi and the others to head down to the docks.

* * *

Anzu and the others stared up at the ship, craning their heads back to really take it all in. "Man, Duelist Kingdom's got to be pretty big for a ship like this." Jounouchi said.

"Certainly a big crowd boarding it, that's for sure." Honda pointed at the end of the docks where a whole bunch of guys were gathered, all of them going over their decks and holding tight onto their invitation cards.

"Look, Insector Haga and Dinosaur Ryuzaki, the champion and runner up from the last tournament." Yuugi said, and Anzu could see the determined excitement in Yuugi's eyes.

Anzu wished she could feel the same, but seeing so many guys there...it wasn't that there weren't any other girls at school who played, but the game was mostly boys, and this just hammered that home. Anzu was never one to balk at that sort of thing, she followed her interests regardless of whether they'd be considered girly or tomboyish or whatever, but still, it would be nice if there were at least one other girl besides herself competing. "Attention Duelists!" She looked up and saw a man with a big pointed spike of hair, and for a second Anzu thought he looked familiar, but no, someone with hair like that she'd recognize no problem. "Industrial Illusions welcomes you to this event, for we have painstakingly researched your dueling records, even in unofficial matches, and have handpicked the best that Japan has to offer; thus, the star of glory shines over you all, and all of you can reach it! Now board, cross the sea, reach the light, and become king of Duelist Kingdom!"

A loud cheer rose up from the gathered crowd, and Anzu only just kept from getting swept up in it. "Ha ha ha ha ha!" A woman, that was a woman laughing! "Like a pep rally for little kids...but then again, it is mostly kids here isn't it?" Anzu looked, and was shocked that she hadn't seen the woman before; even in a more evenly mixed crowd she would have stood out, a blonde woman dressed in just a miniskirt and coat over an open corset, with a pack slung over her back held in one hand. "Hee hee, haven't found any real competition yet..." The woman turned in their direction, and Anzu was unable to work her jaw. "Hey, you're Yuugi aren't you?" Anzu looked over and saw Yuugi blushing, blatantly unambigously blushing! "Surprising a kid like you could beat Kaiba; you're famous, you know that right?"

"Um, thanks!" Yuugi stammered out, and his blush only grew worse when the woman started rubbing his nose; this was not what Anzu had been asking for! She'd wanted someone that she could talk with and relate to, not some brazen...argh!

"Mam, mam, I'm a friend of Yuugi Mutou and..." And this was another good reason Anzu wished she'd had a female friend to bring along for this; they wouldn't be losing it and making fools of themselves with someone like that!

"Yeah, that's nice." The woman walked away. "Boy or man, that doesn't matter in a duel." She turned her head to look back over her shoulder at them. "Any man who gets in my way, I'll crush them under my heel."

"Then it looks like I'll have to be the one to crush you then!" Anzu stunned herself, surely she hadn't been that angry?

"Oh?" The woman stepped in and took a close look at Anzu. "Hmm, nice; would have figured you as just Yuugi's cheerleader, but this is much more interesting." The woman took a step back. "The name's Mai Kujaku, and I hope you know what you're getting yourself into." The woman laughed as she walked away.

"What a woman!" Honda cried out.

"The sweet perfume of a beautiful lady..." Jounouchi and Yuugi were sniffing at where Mai had been standing.

"Idiots!" Honestly, were there any guys who didn't turn into...that?

"Hmm, I suppose she is pretty." Anzu looked over at Bakura and at the neutral expression on his face; okay, that was one guy, but he could stand to speak up a bit more.

"Come on guys, let's go!" Anzu said, and was bit startled when Yuugi had said it with her, at the same time.

* * *

The boat had left the docks, and they watched Domino City fall below the horizon, the lights dipping down to make room for the real stars up in the sky, though which one was supposed to be the star of glory, Anzu couldn't say. They were here now, no turning back; Yuugi was going to face Pegasus and win and get his Grandpa back, and she was going to get the money she needed to make it to America so she could fulfill her childhood dreams. "Attention everyone!" It was the man from before, the announcer it would seem. "I will show you to your rooms so follow me!" Anzu was looking forward to this, a boat of this size and this luxury...

"The rooms have got to be swanky!" Jounouchi said, echoing Anzu's thoughts on the matter.

"Pardon, you are Yuugi Mutou, yes?" They turned their heads and...

"Insector Haga!" Yuugi lit up. "Dinosaur Ryuzaki! Congratulations on the tournament Haga."

"I went easy on the guy, not that big a deal." Ryuzaki said.

"He's right about one thing, it wasn't a big deal." Haga said. "The big deal will be when I get to face you in Duelist Kingdom, Yuugi; if I could duel you and Kaiba, the tournament wouldn't mean a thing to me." Yuugi dipped his head in thought. "Oh, and apparently there's going to be some new rules introduced, just for Duelist Kingdom."

What?! She'd been spending all week with Yuugi learning the ins and outs of the game, and now they were going to throw more rules at them? Argh, what a complete...no, no, time spent with Yuugi wasn't a waste, he was her best friend and besides which...

"Whatever!" Ryuzaki said, derailing Anzu's train of thought. "So long as the game's still about monsters fighting monsters, killing or being killed, I'll still come out on top!"

"Oh come on!" Jounouchi further derailed things. "You're going to stuff us all in this lousy common room?"

"Seriously, there's not even any beds here!"

"We should be getting big rooms, the way rich people do!"

"Only the finalists of the previous tournament will receive private rooms." So said the Industrial Illusions suit.

"Yep, exclusive to us!" Ryuzaki snickered, what a brat.

"You know," Haga said, still sticking close to Yuugi, "the common room might actually be better." Anzu took a look, tried to figure out what the heck Haga was talking about...they were trading! Everyone was going over their cards and trading them with other players! "You see Yuugi? Your girl there's already got the idea." Indeed, Anzu had already worked her way into the middle of the crowd, and so didn't hear herself being referred to as Yuugi's girl, nor did she see the blush on Yuugi's face.

"You have got to be kidding me!" Anzu did hear Mai Kujaku complaining. "You're going to stick a lady like me in a dorm like this, without even a shower?!" Okay, she had a point, but did she have to be so indignant about it? It wasn't like she was being singled out or anything.

"Keep that up and they'll kick your whiny butt off the boat; look at her, she knows when to keep quiet." Ryuzaki laughed that nasty laugh of his.

"Hey!" Anzu stepped in before Mai could get a word in edgewise. "Just because I wasn't saying anything doesn't mean there wasn't a problem bucko!" She got right in Ryuzaki's face. "If Pegasus J. Crawford couldn't bother to think about the fact that it wasn't just going to be boys in here, that's his problem, not hers or mine!"

"That's quite enough Anzu." Mai put her hand on Anzu's shoulder. "I can take care of myself quite well, thank you very much." Then she walked up to Ryuzaki. "What say you fix this little problem, maybe share that luxurious room you've got? Bet there's plenty of room for an appreciative guest?"

"You bet!" Ryuzaki crowed, and Anzu wondered why she'd even bothered.

"Anzu, over here!" Bakura waved over to her, he was seated with the rest of the guys. "See, it'll be like a camping trip!"

Anzu sighed, remembered why she was really here, and returned to her friends. "Hey Yuugi, mind if we get in some more training? I did manage to get some new cards."

"Somehow, I doubt Yuugi would ever say no to that." Jounouchi said.

"Dude, shush!" Honda whapped Jounouchi on the back of the head, but Anzu didn't pay attention to them; this wasn't the first time they'd made dumb jokes like that, and besides, it wasn't as though she didn't have feelings for Yuugi...just, you know, when he dueled, when he gamed seriously with stakes on the line, the other Yuugi showed up, and those feelings became so much stronger.

But that was neither here nor there, right now she had a dream to achieve and she would stop at nothing to achieve it.

* * *

"And that takes care of that." Mai Kujaku said as she kicked the door to what had been Ryuzaki's room shut. "Honestly, falling for that routine so easily, he deserved to lose all this." Mai Kujaku dropped herself onto the soft cushy bed that came with the room. She stretched back and looked at the ceiling, and saw Anzu's furious face. "Sorry, but you've got a lot to learn about how the real world operates; you look smart though, you'll figure it out before long." And she'd be walking over all the fools in the world who still believed in ridiculous nonsense like dreams, just like her.

* * *

"Whoo, feel that ocean breeze." Jounouchi said, stretching his arms way out.

"I've been puzzling and puzzling, but I have to admit I'm stumped." Yuugi's grandpa said, still trapped in the video player. "Just why is Pegasus doing this, setting up a tournament so far out of the way and bringing all these duelists here? It's a great deal of expense and no clear gain at all."

"I know Grandpa, but whatever the reason, I'm going to defeat Pegasus and make him put your soul back in your body." Anzu heard the confidence in Yuugi's voice, but she also saw the tension in his shoulders. There was that part of her that wanted to reach out to him...

"Yuugi, how nice to see you." That part of Anzu quieted right down in the face of that interruption.

"Ah, Haga!" Yuugi smiled at him.

"I got bored sitting around in my room, thought I'd walk around a bit." Haga adjusted his coat. "You get any good trades in the common room."

"Nah, I'm sticking with the cards I started with."

"Smart, those are the cards you beat Kaiba with...including Exodia, right?"

"Ha ha, boy, you must have done your homework."

"Do you suppose I could look at them? I mean, I've only ever heard about them, I haven't even seen any of them before."

Yuugi took out his deck, hesitated. Anzu wasn't going to say anything, over the past week and tonight something she'd learned was that a person's deck was their own business, she was just going to have to stifle that busybody voice inside of her. "You already know, so why not?" Yuugi took the Exodia cards out of his deck and handed them to Haga.

"So, Exodia, the Forbidden One...once all are gathered in the hand, victory is complete..." Haga looked at Yuugi. "Thank you Yuugi, I've been thinking a really long time how I was going to beat these cards, and I've just figured it out."

"Really?"

"Yep, this is my foolproof strategy." Haga said, after he'd already thrown the cards over the side of the boat.

"I'll get them!" Jounouchi yelled out as he dived over the edge after them.

"Damn it!" Anzu yelled out. "Bakura, Honda, help me look for the rescue equipment!" That idiot, no matter how important cards were, they weren't that important! As she ran off, she caught it in her peripheral vision, Yuugi becoming the other Yuugi, and once again Anzu had to quiet another of her inner voices; this was no time for fawning, Jounouchi needed all of them to bail his dumb ass out!


	3. Chapter 3

Dreams Versus Reality, Anzu's First Duel!

* * *

**Author's Notes:** Just a reminder that this story is taking place in Duelist Kingdom and therefore follows Duelist Kingdom rules and therefore any discrepancies with how the actual game works are entirely intentional.

* * *

"That's right, you're outta here Haga!" Jounouchi hollered after Haga's retreating form, his green bowl haircut fading out of sight while Anzu put on his Dueling Glove so that she could put her Star Chip into it.

"Better luck never!" Honda called out, even though Haga was completely out of sight; Anzu didn't mind though, if anyone deserved to be chewed out and shamed until the end of time, it was Haga; not only had the little freak tossed Yuugi's Exodia cards off the side of the boat, but he'd deliberately goaded and drew them into the forest where he knew he'd have the advantage thanks to getting all the rules from Pegasus...and he wasn't getting off light either, he'd get his when they got all the Star Chips they needed to get into his castle.

"Come on guys, let's get going." Anzu said, Yuugi and Bakura already at her side; once the duel had started Yuugi had been his fierce and controlling self, and even now that fight was over he still had that burning energy to him. He smiled up at her as they walked together, Anzu held back a blush as Jounouchi and Honda caught up to them before they were left behind.

"That really was good Yuugi, I'll have to do something like that the next time we play Monster World." Bakura said, and then they were back in the open, and Anzu felt herself being pulled to the shoreline where she could look off to the east; there her goal lied, her true goal past this tournament she'd unofficially joined; there was where she was going to make all her dreams come true, there in America she was going to dance on a stage in front of a crowd come what may.

"Yeah, I win!" Anzu turned and saw numerous Duel Boxes now occupied by duelists.

"I guess once I dueled Haga, everyone else figured out how the game worked." Yuugi smirked. Anzu did not. Watching all the fights that were taking place before her, knowing that there were still more duels taking place in other parts of the island, knowing that choosing the right place to duel could make all the difference in the world.

"Not for nothing Anzu, but you sure you're ready for this?" Jounouchi said. "I mean, sure, you kick my ass at lunch, but that ain't much of an accomplishment."

"Yeah, no offense Anzu, but we're going to have to be careful and find someone at your level." Honda flinched before he even finished getting that out, and it was good for him he did; if he thought that she was going to let him get away with saying something like that...

Then a high and haughty feminine laugh sounded out like something out of a cheesy 90's anime pierced Anzu's ears, and sure enough, it was Mai Kujaku. "That's right little boy, you run along now and let your daddy know how proud you made him."

"Fine, fine, I get it!" The boy yelled back. "I shouldn't have looked down on you, but still, that stunt you did with the cards, how was I supposed to concentrate like that?!" Stunt? Anzu and the others moved in closer.

"Oh, it was no stunt at all, I'm nothing if not the real deal." She shuffled her cards without looking at them, and it wasn't a shotgun shuffle either; Yuugi had taught her that that damaged the cards, and he'd learned it from his Grandpa. For a moment Anzu wondered where Mai had learned that from, but then Mai laughed again, and that curiosity died a lurching death in her gut.

"Come on guys, let's get going." She'd deal with Haga a thousand times before having to deal with someone as uniquely frustrating as Mai Kujaku.

"Yuugi!" Mai trotted along up to them, playing up a dainty persona that made Anzu grind her teeth together. "How have your duels been?"

"Good." Yuugi spoke in a neutral tone, no aggression or concession. Anzu could see it in his eyes, he was sizing Mai up, and Mai was doing the same; now this was a duel that Anzu would be eager to watch.

"Well, I've made my decision; I'm going to duel you!" Anzu stared at Mai's finger and felt the realization slowly sink in, Mai was pointing right at her! "Don't get me wrong, kicking off the only other girl on the whole island isn't my cup of tea, but I've got to be careful not to end up like Haga." Yuugi grunted.

"Anzu, you better not accept, she's definitely not someone to be trifled with."

"Yeah Anzu, who knows what kinds of tricks she's got up her sleeve."

"Yuugi, you tell her, you know she'll listen to you."

Anzu looked to Yuugi, saw the power in those eyes. "Anzu, do your best."

"Right!" Fire in her eyes and fist clenched, she looked Mai in the face. "I've faced way worse obstacles than you on the way to my dream, if I turn away from you here and now, I'll never be able to look at myself in the mirror again; for the sake of the me that's living my dream, I accept your challenge Mai Kujaku!"

"Good, now come this way, the field here is just perfect for me." Anzu followed and entered the Duel Box, sat down and noticed that she could still hear her friends, something that made her smile. Then she looked down at the table and her eyes bugged out at just how realistic and three-dimensional the displays looked; it was like someone had plucked her up into the sky and she was looking down at the ground all around them. "Now then, our field is 40% mountain, 40% grassland, and 20% wasteland, and since you've only got the one star chip to wager, I'll wager just one of my own." Mai took one of the four star chips she had on her glove and put it down on her side of the table. "You got all that Anzu?"

"Yeah, I got it." Wasn't much to get really. "But before we begin, there's something I want to ask you."

"Oh?" Mai leaned back in her chair, arms across her chest.

"Why are you here? What are you going to do with the prize money if you get it?"

"What else? I'm going to spend it, live the high life!" She leaned forward now. "Just picture it Anzu, eating caviar in Paris and buying up all the chanel and vuitton one could ever want, now doesn't that sound divine?"

"Not in the least." Anzu harrumphed. "You sound like a spoiled brat when you say stuff like that."

"Oh?" Mai's eye twitched. "And just what does a high-school girl like you think is mature enough for the prize money from a card-game tournament?"

"I said it before; I'm going to fulfill my dream, I'm going to make it to America and dance up on stage before a packed crowd cheering me on."

"Oh, that's rich, and you accuse me of being childish?" Mai laughed. "You're in luck Anzu, I'm going to be giving you a good lesson on what being a grown-up is really all about, and all I'm going to be charging you is that star chip of yours when I win." Mai drew her cards, as did Anzu. "So, here comes the beautiful and deadly Harpie Lady, who will be gaining a field bonus thanks to my mountains, increasing her attack power to a nice comfortable 1690." A bird woman with huge claws and slim straps of cloth lined up vertically across her chest appeared on Mai's side of the field. "Your turn."

Turn 2, Anzu Mazaki: 2000 life points, Mai Kujaku: 2000 life points.

"Yes!" Anzu drew her card, looked over her hand; much as she wanted to take that stupid monster and blast it into oblivion the way she'd done to Zork in Bakura's Monster World game, she didn't have anything that could do it; but that didn't mean there was nothing she could do! "I summon Spirit of the Harp in defense." A green haired woman in a tan robe appeared on Anzu's side of the field, reclines and strumming her harp contentedly. "She's got 2000 defense, so even without a field power bonus she'll be safe from your monster."

Turn 3, Anzu Mazaki: 2000 life points, Mai Kujaku: 2000 life points.

"That a fact? Then why don't I go ahead and introduce you to Harpie Lady's first accessory, Cyber Bondage." Mai put her spell card down on the appropriate slot and instantly her monster was clad in what could be called armor...well, it did cover, but the long spikes on the breast plates were way too suggestive to be practical. "Now as you can see, Harpie Lady's attack power has just increased by 500 points, which means your little lady is going bye bye." Mai's monster swooped down from the mountains and cleaved her claws into Sprit of the Harp's harp, and so the spirit perished along with it. "So much for that." Mai set a card down while her Harpie Lady returned to the mountains. "Better get something on the field fast, my Harpie Lady is not going to wait around forever."

Turn 4, Anzu Mazaki: 2000 life points, Mai Kujaku: 2000 life points.

"Fine." Anzu drew her card. "Your Harpie Lady isn't going to have to wait at all, because I'm summoning Maiden of the Moonlight in attack position, and thanks to the wasteland, she's getting a Field Power Bonus too!" A winged sorceress with pointed ears stood in the barren landscape, and between her hands she held a soft glowing light, her 1500 attack power rising to 1950. "And now I activate my spell card, Sacred Prayer, increasing the attack power of all my spellcaster monsters by 400 until my next turn, and that means now I've got more attack power than you!" Anzu's monster locked eyes with Mai's, the light between its hands grew. She fired, a solid beam of moonlight less then a moment away from striking home.

"Sorry Anzu, but you aimed too high." Harpie Lady grabbed hold of a whip covered in thorns and lassoed Maiden of the Moonlight's attack, twirling it over her head. "Now I've equipped my Harpie Lady with Rose Whip, increasing her attack power by another 300 points." Harpie Lady snapped the whip and launched the energy back at Maiden of the Moonlight with even more force than before, destroying Anzu's monster for 140 points of damage. "Now tell me Anzu, who do you think has a better grasp on how things work here?" Mai shook her finger in Anzu's face before she could respond. "I do of course, I'm the adult in this picture and I can assure you that your silly little dream is the sort that only a child could cook up and think was worth pursuing; better drop it now and focus on what really matters before you get in too far."

Turn 5, Anzu Mazaki: 1860 life points, Mai Kujaku: 2000 life points.

Anzu grumbled but had no response; the fact was that she'd started having her dream when she was little, when even she would say she was just a child. "Now then, under Duelist Kingdom rules, I can't attack you directly this turn, but if you don't put something down on the field during your turn, all bets are off." Mai chuckled. "So what's it going to be? Drag this out further, or are you going to go ahead and concede to your better?"

Turn 6, Anzu Mazaki: 1860 life points, Mai Kujaku: 2000 life points.

"I summon Tenderness in defense." A pink ball with four wings curled around itself and a sad smile on its face. "I'm not giving up yet."

Turn 7, Anzu Mazaki: 1860 life points, Mai Kujaku: 2000 life points.

"All right then, we're going to do this the hard way." Harpie Lady ripped through Tenderness, its meager defenses not up to the task set before them.

Turn 8, Anzu Mazaki: 1860 life points, Mai Kujaku: 2000 life points.

"I summon Fairy's Gift in defense." A tiny sprite with butterfly wings in a green dress and a wand with a star at the end; as a spellcaster it would have benefited from the Field Power Bonus, but with both Cyber Bondage and Rose Whip in play, Mai's monster was much too powerful for that to make a difference.

Mai sighed. "Look, what's the big deal about this dream of yours? It's dancing, even if you were the best in the whole wide world, would it really make a difference one way or the other? No, it wouldn't, and I admit it, so why shouldn't I indulge myself? No reason not to, and that truth is what makes the difference between you and me, what makes me a True Duelist."

"No, that's not true!" Anzu slammed her hand down on the table. "Doing what you love, putting your heart and soul into perfecting your technique and showing it to the world, it does matter. Maybe if the picture gets big enough, sure it might be small and not really matter," Anzu turned her head to look at her friends, "but the smiles I can bring to their faces, they're important enough to me and they're all I really need!"

"You tell her Anzu!" Jounouchi and Honda howled together.

"That's right, show her what you're really made of." Bakura said, hands cupped around his mouth.

"You can do this Anzu, I know you can." Anzu smiled even more at the sound of Yuugi's voice.

Turn 9, Anzu Mazaki: 1860 life points, Mai Kujaku: 2000 life points.

"Oh, now this is rich." Mai laughed darkly. "You think your little high school buddies will make a difference? Hate to break it to you, but the friendships that you think will last forever, won't." Mai drew her card, smirked. "The only thing that can really last, that you can truly rely on, is yourself; I activate Elegent Egotist, summoning two more Harpie Ladies from my deck, with all the same bonuses as the original one!" There were slight variations in theme, but all three of them were essentially the same terrible monster. "Now, lucky you, I don't get to attack when I activate this card, but next turn..." Mai set her card and ended her turn.

Turn 10, Anzu Mazaki: 1860 life points, Mai Kujaku: 2000 life points.

Anzu drew her card, and saw that it was one of the new cards that she'd traded for on the boat ride over. Anzu looked it over and wondered whether or not to use it; if Mai's face-down card made her Harpie Ladies any stronger, then it wouldn't do her any good. "Having a hard time deciding what to do?" Mai said. "Then let me go ahead and make it simple for you; I activate my trap card Twisting Gust!" Mai's monsters flew over to Anzu's side of the field and flapped their wings to stir up hurricane winds all over the place. "Now not only do you have to switch your Fairy's Gift into attack position, but you also have to summon another monster from your hand in attack position."

Anzu braced herself as she put down Happy Lover next to Fairy's Gift, her new monster looking much like Tenderness did save for a more yellow-orange coloration. "All right then, I set one card and end my turn." This was it, everything was going to be decided here and now.

Turn 11, Anzu Mazaki: 1860 life points, Mai Kujaku: 2000 life points.

"And here we go." Mai didn't even look at the card she drew. "Sorry to have to wrap this up, but that prize money's calling my name and I don't plan on making it wait for me; Harpie Lady 1, attack and destroy Happy Lover!" Mai's monster scratched at Anzu's until there was nothing left, so many claws and whips that Anzu took 1690 points of damage, leaving her hanging by a thread. "And now I'll go ahead and finish this with my second Harpie Lady; destroy Fairy's Gift!" Mai practically howled as her second monster swooped down for the kill.

"Wrong." Anzu smirked, trying to do it just the way Yuugi did. "I activate my trap card Rising Star, and give Fairy's Gift attack points equal to the damage I just took."

"What?!" Mai's eyes bugged out practically out of her skull as Anzu's monster surged with power, so much power that it was able to destroy Mai's Harpie Lady for 1070 points of damage.

Turn 12, Anzu Mazaki: 170 life points, Mai Kujaku: 930 life points.

"You try and hammer me down, try to wear me out and make me give up, that just makes me try all the harder, and that's what I'm able to do with my friends at my back supporting me every step of the way! Fairy's Gift, attack!" Anzu almost jumped out of her skin as the attack went through and every last one of Mai's life points were gone.

"You, you...arghh!" Mai yelled incoherently and grabbed her head, running her hands through her thick blonde hair.

"You know something Mai?" Anzu stood up and picked up her newly won Star Chip. "Maybe I am a kid next to you, and I'm definitely not a True Duelist, but I do know one thing that doesn't change no matter what the world throws at you." Mai released her grip on her head. "It's something you can show, but you can't see."

Mai blinked several times, then stormed off.


End file.
